Silver amulet is Bulgaria’s earliest Christian artifact

A small sheet of silver inscribed in Greek has been revealed to be the earliest Christian artifact ever discovered in Bulgaria. The amulet dates to the second half of the 2nd century or the beginning of the 3rd, and contains the first mention of Christ, the first sign of the cross and the first references to the archangels Gabriel and Michael.

The silver sheet was unearthed in the summer of 2023 in the burial of a young man in the necropolis of the Deultum-Debelt National Archaeological Reserve, site of the ancient Roman colony of Deultum near the modern-day village of Debelt in southeastern Bulgaria. It was rolled up tightly and placed near the head of the deceased. In keeping with Christian practice (even this early), there were no other grave goods buried with him.

At first glance, the scroll looked like a silver ingot, but archaeologists realized it was actually a thin sheet of silver foil tightly rolled up. It would likely have been placed in a leather or fabric holder and worn as a pendant or hidden inside the clothes.

Conservators were able to unfurl it without damaging the surface and reveal the inscription within. Epigrapher Dr. Nikolay Sharankov worked with the archaeological team to decipher the inscription. It translates to: “Gabriel, Michael, Guardian – Christ” which each name on its own line. Amulets invoking angels, usually four of them, have been found in Jewish, Christian and pagan magical texts. In this case only two angels are invoked by name, but there are still four words. The third word, “Guardian,” is believed to be a reference to Christ’s role and to the general role of the amulet itself.

Christ is written +ΡЄICTOC, with the first letter of Christ’s name, X, rotated 45 degrees to form a cross. This is a symbolic feature found in some very early Christian inscriptions. Also notable for its early coinage is the spelling of the i-sound in Christ as “EI” instead of the single “I” letter.

“Inscriptions visible to the public rarely overtly disclosed early Christians’ religious allegiance,” Sharankov notes. “They often utilized innocuous symbols such as birds or fish, or veiled expressions like ‘God’ that didn’t draw suspicion. Explicit references to Jesus Christ were rare, with one early example found in a tomb inscription from Plovdiv, ancient Philippopolis, dating back to the early 3rd century. However, in that instance, the name ‘Jesus’ was conveyed through a cipher—likely understood only by Christians—as the number 888. In contrast, the amulet from Deultum, concealed from prying eyes, allowed for the direct mention of Christ without ambiguity or secrecy.”

Founded by Vespasian around 70 A.D. as a colony for the veterans of the Legio VIII Augusta who had backed his bid for the imperial throne, Deultum was only the second Roman colony on the Balkan Peninsula, the first Roman city in what is now Bulgaria and the only colony of Roman citizens ever to be founded in Bulgaria. It was a port town on the Sredetska River with direct access to the Black Sea and became the richest city in the area, prospering from trade and copper mining. It reached its peak of prosperity, population and urban growth during the Severan dynasty in the late 2nd and early 3rd century.

Deultum was also the first town in Bulgaria known to have had a Christian bishop. The diocese of Develtos was founded in the 2nd century and the first bishop to be named in historical sources, Aelius Publius Julius, is cited by Eusebius of Caesarea in the Historia Ecclesiastica as actively combating the Montanist heresy in the 170s.

The amulet is now on display at the museum of the Deultum-Debelt National Archaeological Reserve.

* This article was originally published here